I'm just a workin' mama – sellin' some houses to bring home the bacon. I'm a licensed REALTOR in Texas with Step Up Realty. (I gotta say that last part so I don't get in trouble.)

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Monthly Archives: October 2012

Going totally real life here today. I was a straight A student K-12th grade and graduated with a 3.8 GPA in major from Texas A&M University with a degree in Computer Science. (The only reason I qualify “in major” is because of my freshman year when I thought that all classes should be taught at The Dixie Chicken because that’s where I was. Needless to say, not my finest academic hour.) I don’t say any of that to brag. I only say it to point out that I had the education system I existed in figured out – such as it was.

My journey in the last 7 years (since quitting my corporate J-O-B) and most especially in the last 2 years has been transformational to the way I perceive education & success. With my 1st child starting Kindergarten next year, I’m becoming hyper aware of our education system after having been out of it for more than a decade. So when I listened to Seth Godin’s message “Stop Selling Dreams (What is school for?),” it hit home. Hard. It’s a long clip (almost 17 minutes), and it’s worth every second. I’d say enjoy, but I’m not sure that’s really what I’m hoping for you when you watch. How ‘bout “Ask the Question!”?

Audrey is a REALTOR and Broker/Owner of Audrey Reed Realty with Step Up Realty in McKinney, TX. Connect with her on Facebook or checkout her website. This blog represents HER opinions and are not necessarily the opinions of her broker/brokerage … wait … she is the broker … and it’s her brokerage … never mind! All information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
How’s that for a disclaimer???

Today you get to see a little of the back office work of real estate marketing. I’m using a new tool to send out video emails to my clients. After recording the video no less than 17 times, I decided that close enough was good enough. Who would notice that half my face is in a glare from the windows that I so fervently sought out for their natural light because natural light is best, right? Oops! Who’s going to notice that I had to let my eyes dart down to my reminder notes once or twice? Well, maybe you will now that I’ve pointed it out, but whatever. And in hindsight, I shouldn’t have said anything about it being a video email because I’m about to post it here and this isn’t an email. Oh, well.

Here’s the point – “real life” is part of the name of this blog for a reason. In real life, I want to get this very important message to you and now is the right time to do it. So here it is … enjoy!

Audrey is a REALTOR and Broker/Owner of Audrey Reed Realty with Step Up Realty in McKinney, TX. Connect with her on Facebook or checkout her website. This blog represents HER opinions and are not necessarily the opinions of her broker/brokerage … wait … she is the broker … and it’s her brokerage … never mind! All information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
How’s that for a disclaimer???

I just got off the phone with my photo printer. I’m not going to be able to get by tonight to pick up my latest set of prints, but I really want them ASAP. So they are going to put my photos out where I can pick them up before they even open in the morning. WAAAAH??? They are going above and beyond to help me? Even asking if I really meant to crop that picture of my son the way I did (it was a pretty weird crop) in case I needed to resend it? Yup! Why would they do that? What do they care? They care because I’m a loyal customer, and they understand customer service (that’s a whole other post). My loyalty to them has earned me special privileges like an early morning pick up. It also means that when I botch an entire order they just pitch it and let me reprint at no cost. Pretty cool, huh? Are they the cheapest printer around? Maybe, maybe not. But I don’t really care because since they provide me with a stellar service at a reasonable price, I’m loyal to them.

What’s the point? In this day and age of bargain hunting and coupon compulsing, there’s a temptation to be lured away from our service & product providers that have served us well for a long time. I appreciate the marketing efforts of service providers, retailers and product manufacturers to capture mind share with their promotions, and I wish them luck in luring in people who do not already have a strong relationship with a different provider/retailer/product. I submit that when we have those established relationships we should not be lured away by tempting offers. Instead we should be loyal to the people & products that have served us well.

What does this have to do with real estate? Simple, during almost 7 years in this industry, I’ve worked with some amazing vendors & service providers and some that were much less awesome. When I am working on a transaction or recommending vendors to clients, I’m always going to try my hardest to remain loyal to my partners that have served me and my clients well in the past because those are the people that I know will answer their cell phone for me day or night when a problem comes up that needs to be fixed. They are the ones that will go above and beyond to treat my clients with the respect and professionalism that they deserve because I am loyal to them. I feel that it’s an important piece of the value that I bring to the table as an experienced REALTOR.

Audrey is a REALTOR and Broker/Owner of Audrey Reed Realty with Step Up Realty in McKinney, TX. Connect with her on Facebook or checkout her website. This blog represents HER opinions and are not necessarily the opinions of her broker/brokerage … wait … she is the broker … and it’s her brokerage … never mind! All information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
How’s that for a disclaimer???

Being self-directed and having a little more control over my schedule definitely has its perks and its challenges. In the last month or so, I’ve been making a more concerted effort to take care of this one and only body the good Lord blessed me with. Part of that is getting it moving more again after foot surgery this summer, which as you can guess, made mobility at bit of an issue. On a suggestion from my coach, I began starting my day off with a walk almost 2 weeks ago. The difference it has made for my body, mind, & soul is simply stunning. During my last walk, I started ticking off all the great things my 30-minute morning jaunts are doing for me. In no particular order …

It gets my blood pumping! Let’s face it … some nights we get more/better sleep than others and not matter how much or what kind of sleep I get, my alarm still buzzes at 5:00am. Ouch! Instead of dragging a** through the day, getting my walk in gets my blood pumping & endorphins flowing and helps me shake off any residual sluggishness. Truth time – some mornings it pumps a little faster than others. I usually shoot for a 15 minute mile (I know lightening, right???), and some mornings it’s not quite that brisk. It doesn’t matter! The effect is the same. Beautiful, isn’t it?

It clears my mind! I admit that I’m a recovering Type A, High D, whatever-you-want-to-call-it personality. That means there’s usually a lot of J-U-N-K floating around in my brain. I have no idea what it is about morning air, but it has an incredible clearing effect. BREATHE – In with the good, out with the bad. This is the time that I can finally start to get clarity for my day. Ahhhhh.

Reward for an early morning walk – a gorgeous sunrise!

It calms my soul. I’m a full time REALTOR, wife, and mother to a 2 & 4 year old. I joyfully embrace all that God has blessed me with. What I could do without is the chaos that clutters my soul sometimes. The time I spend bipedaling through my neighborhood allows me an uninterrupted opportunity to reevaluate & re-center on what’s important in my life and in my business. For me, clear priorities = calm soul.

It reminds me to see & appreciate the small things! Too often, we spend our lives … okay, I spend my life … on the go-go-go. Go here … go there … fast, fast, fast! How on earth can you possibly notice the small things – a bird chirping, your neighbor’s new Halloween decorations, the small signs of progress on the neighborhood school being built – if you’re driving by at Mach 2 with your hair on fire??? You just can’t. A far slower form of locomotion allows us to really experience what’s happening around us.

It improves my health! Being 2 kids and 17 years past 20, my body is telling me in some less than subtle ways that it’s time to start making my health a priority (see #3). One day, I’ll do more than a 30-minute walk. I even have aspirations of doing a triathlon. And for today, this is enough. My body & my health appreciate that I’m doing more now that I was a month ago. Woo hoo!

For those reasons and so many more, do yourself a favor – get moving! It doesn’t matter if it’s 30 minutes first thing in the morning or 10 minutes at lunch (what a great mid-day pick me up!). Just move!

Audrey is a REALTOR and Broker/Owner of Audrey Reed Realty with Step Up Realty in McKinney, TX. Connect with her on Facebook or checkout her website. This blog represents HER opinions and are not necessarily the opinions of her broker/brokerage … wait … she is the broker … and it’s her brokerage … never mind! All information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
How’s that for a disclaimer???

Today we’ll be taking a break from my real estate related ramblings to talk about something near & dear to my heart. And I’ll be lucky if I make it through this post without crying. Here goes …

This beautiful puppy is Jester.

He is an Australian Cattle Dog/Shepherd mix. We adopted him when he was 4 years old, and he spent his remaining 10 years being a loving & devoted member of our family. He had a few quirks that we can only guess came from some kind of mistreatment with his previous owners, but they never kept him from always waiting at the door for us with a wagging tail to welcome us home. We were so lucky to have found this amazing dog at a shelter.

October is Adopt a Shelter Dog Month. If you’re considering adding a new member to your family of barking, 4-legged variety, please consider adopting one of the sweet & wonderful dogs that are anxiously waiting at a shelter for someone to take them to their forever home.

For the record, I cried the entire time I was writing this. It’s been over a year and a half since we lost Jester, and we still miss him terribly. We aren’t ready to love another one like that just yet, but when we do we’ll be heading right back to the shelter to find that next furry & fabulous member of our family.

Audrey is a REALTOR and Broker/Owner of Audrey Reed Realty with Step Up Realty in McKinney, TX. Connect with her on Facebook or checkout her website. This blog represents HER opinions and are not necessarily the opinions of her broker/brokerage … wait … she is the broker … and it’s her brokerage … never mind! All information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
How’s that for a disclaimer???

This is one of those days. One of those days when having control over my own destiny (i.e., being self-employed) means my personal life gets a little more attention than my business.

The day starts out with my dear hubby Chris’ pre-op appointment for his shoulder surgery that is happening tomorrow. Next it will be a dash to the Apple Store to swap out my phone since the battery in my old one is pooping out. When you’re an always-on-the-move REALTOR, that’s just not a good thing. On to my weekly call with the ever amazing coach, Allison Crow. Then, off to pick up the girl for an appointment with our ENT to find out if she gets in on the surgial action for a new set of ear tubes. In the midst of it all, Mamo (my Mom) is coming in for an extended visit to provide a much appreciated extra set of hands while Chris is recuperating from surgery. And I fully expect that on a day like today, my phone will be ringing off the hook (what a dated phrase!) with people needing to sell their house in this great market.

Phew! Gotta love life!

Audrey is a REALTOR and Broker/Owner of Audrey Reed Realty with Step Up Realty in McKinney, TX. Connect with her on Facebook or checkout her website. This blog represents HER opinions and are not necessarily the opinions of her broker/brokerage … wait … she is the broker … and it’s her brokerage … never mind! All information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
How’s that for a disclaimer???